Aircraft have an increasing need for electrical energy to supply power to the many onboard actuators and electrical equipment. Thus, an aircraft comprises at least one electricity power supply network comprising at least one multi-phase electricity generator supplying power to a plurality of phase lines.
For example, an aircraft may comprise two completely independent AC electricity networks and two DC networks. Each AC network is multi-phase (for example three-phase) with variable or fixed frequency provided by at least one generator coupled to the accessory box of the corresponding engine.
The electrical energy output by the electricity generators integrated into the aircraft engines is routed to the avionics bay through many long cables. Each phase line is shared between several transmission cables to satisfy aeronautical needs that are increasingly dictated by particularly severe safety, reliability and redundancy constraints. Each transmission cable is provided with a current transformer to measure the intensity of the current carried by it. The different current intensity measurements are transmitted to an onboard computer that manages the electricity power supply network.
At the moment, unit tests using special tools are performed as the aircraft assembly progresses to test installation of the cables. These tests are very complex to perform and usually consist of measuring cable resistances sequentially and by segment and require a non-negligible time. The tests thus confirm continuity of the wiring and coherence between the different current intensity measurements but cannot test the assignment of lines or the assembled orientation of the different current transformers. Furthermore, before a network installed in an aircraft can be tested, the generator has to be disconnected and at least part of the wiring has to be removed.
Consequently, the purpose of this invention is to correct the above-mentioned disadvantages by disclosing a system to test the integrity of an electricity power supply network in an aircraft that is easy to use, reliable and non-intrusive.